June 11, 2021
Volume 3 • Issue 10
AND NOW... PLEASE ENJOY OUR FEATURE PRESENTATION
San Jose, CA Guggenheim Entertainment, operator of 3Below Theaters in Downtown San Jose, has a message for movie fans: It’s time to return to theaters! After over a year of being shuttered, theaters around the country are welcoming guests back to the movies. As Downtown San Jose’s only movie theater, 3Below Theater is ready to welcome moviegoers for summer blockbusters like In The Heights and Black Widow as well as awardwinning independent
films, classic and retro movies, and later this year, the return of their wildly popular sing-along cinema experiences. 3Below is also home to San Jose Playhouse, the producers’ newly dubbed professional live theatre company. Live entertainment including musicals, theater for young audiences, classes, community programming, and ComedySportz is expected to reopen in September 2021. Reopening 3Below for
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movies is a significant milestone for Downtown San Jose as it resumes normal operation after the COVID-19 pandemic slowed its entertainment and nightlife industries for more than a year. 3Below has a major part to play because of its history as a vital piece of downtown San Jose’s entertainment destinations. “We are committed to doing all we can to stay alive,” reports producer and film programmer, Scott Guggenheim. “It has been
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terrifically challenging to stay positive and imagine a time when entertainment will fully reopen but with so much invested in the venue since its reimagining in 2018, we owe it to ourselves, our team, and our supporters to press on. We also feel we owe it to our community. The residents of Downtown San Jose and our friends and fans in neighboring communities deserve a unique entertainment destination like 3Below, and with the venue’s long
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history - opening in 1984 and still going strong the venue deserves to be celebrated and attended for years to come.” With vaccines readily available and restrictions loosening nationwide, studios have begun releasing long-delayed titles, resulting in hours of summer movie entertainment filling up the roster. Though still the only South Bay location to enjoy independent, art, foreign, and documentary films like “Queen Bees”, [Continued on Page 06]
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June 11, 2021
The Bay Area Review
Development News San Jose Development Projects Report May 2021 Updates on major construction projects, plus map
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According to our updated Key Development Projects Report for May, 2021, San Jose is experiencing an encouraging recovery in the construction sector, with 12,236 housing units, 1.19 million square feet of retail space, and 16.3 million square feet of office space under entitlement review.
An additional 3,500 residential units, 6,000 square feet of retail space, 7.69 million square feet of office and 465 hotel rooms are under construction. For all the details, download the PDF of the list. The list doesn’t include every projects under review, approved, or under construction You can find the key development projects on the development projects map
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Several significant projects have completed the entitlement review process in the last quarter, with the following projects approved after hearings before Directors. Planning Commission and City Council • Garden Gate amendment • Sobrato Block 8 project • Pacific West Communities Villa Del Sol Mixed Use project on Alum Rock • Cypress Equities’ 308,000 square foot office • 115,000 square foot athletic facility project at 3806 Stevens Creek Boulevard A number of affordable housing projects have begun review by Building and Public Works: Eden Housing’s project at Auzerais, ROEM’s project at Meridian, and The Kelsey project on North 1st Street. Insight Realty’s Carlysle project in downtown has also begun this stage of review and these four projects reflect
768 residential units (468 of which are affordable) that are moving towards construction. The Valley Title project has been submitted to Planning. It will add 1.39 million square feet of office space to the Westbank project portfolio, and Top Golf completed construction and opened with fanfare in Alviso/ North San Jose. This 72,000 square foot facility has been underway since 2016 and has taken the patient work of many of the development services staff. In addition to these projects achieving significant milestones, more than one hundred other key development projects which have an outsized impact are moving forward. These will significantly contribute to fulfilling our city goals and objectives for housing development, employment development and retention, and catalytic placemaking.
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Helping thousands get loans and grants, plus webinars, web pages, videos, hotlines and emails in multiple languages In this post we share the range and some metrics of the activities that OED, functioning as part of the City’s Emergency Operations Center, has dedicated resources and staff time to helping the city’s businesses deal with the drastic impact of the pandemic. Our first insight was that the larger firms and the tech sector were going to be able to maintain operations through allowing employees to mostly work from home. This was not true of small businesses that were not deemed “essential” – our restaurants, small shops, bars, gyms, personal care salons, etc. They were faced with immediate and eventually intermittent closure and serious responsibilities for maintaining social distancing, occupancy limits, etc. This sector became the focus of our emergency and recovery activities. It’s important to note that although residents of several San Jose zip codes were disproportionately vulnerable to COVID-19 infection, illness and mortality, businesses across the city were equally impacted by State and County business restriction and closure orders. Accordingly, City of San José’s emergency response and recovery operations
resources, etc., most also in Spanish, Vietnamese and Chinese/Mandarin.
have been made available to all small businesses throughout the city, EAST SAN JOSÉ FOCUS The City of San José had been focusing significant resources and business support activities in East San José prior to the pandemic, as part of the first-ever city-directed pilot to address small business displacement. The initiative included: Identifying and creating collaborations with communitybased business support organizations such as Start Small Think Big Map- and databased analysis of areas vulnerable to potential development disruption Actively supporting the new Latino Business Foundation and collaborating with the E. Santa Clara and Alum Rock Business Association to establish a new property owner-led business improvement district, which will open later in 2021. At Quetzal Gardens, the new neighborhood business resource center is being led by the Latino Business Foundation in partnership with Somos Mayfair and the Excite Credit Union, in the heart of the Alum Rock area. In late 2020 the City’s OED collaborated with the Latino Business Foundation to design
and implement the first ever equity-driven small business survey. More than 200 businesses completed the survey providing invaluable information on the impact of COVID and the issues facing small businesses as they plan for recovery. The survey is currently being analyzed. GRANTS: Beginning in October 2020 the City provided 296 small businesses with a total of $3.76 million in San José Small Business Rent Relief grants funded by federal Coronavirus Relief Funds (CRF). Businesses had applied for amounts up to $15,000: • 92% awarded to business owners of color • 100% distributed to lowor moderate-income applicants • 52% awarded to businesses located in targeted zip codes most heavily impacted by COVID-19 (on San José‘s East Side) • 100% distributed to businesses with 10 or fewer employees Between March and December 2020, the City of San José also offered Silicon Valley Strong
Small Business Grants of $10,000 funded through corporate donations, and San José Community Development Block Grant-funded (CDBG) Microenterprise Grants of $15,000 using the City’s redirected federal FY 2019-20 CDBG funds. In total, these three grant programs disbursed $6.09 million in grants to support 499 San José small businesses owned by low- or moderateincome individuals, primarily from communities of color located within San José. BUSINESS SUPPORT: OED pivoted its Business Outreach and Communications Programs to focus on small business support, setting up a multilingual phone in hotline (408 535-8181) and dedicated email box (covid19sjbusiness@ sanjoseca.gov), targeted outreach to specific businesses and commercial areas, email blasts to 40K businesses, and weekly webinars, with an emphasis on sharing timely information on health orders, loan and grant programs, business
Examples: • Promotion of federal and state loans/grants (including 1:1 technical support). More than 13,000 Paycheck Protection Program loans in 2020 were awarded in San José, 70% to small businesses. Total value estimated at $1.1 billion • Supported and promoted 6 rounds of the CA Business Relief Grant program (including 1:1 technical support) – over 2,000 small business estimated to benefit in San José • Rapid introduction of SJ Al Fresco initiative to support outdoor business operations • More than 2,000 webinar attendees since 1/1/2021, ~150 per weekly session • Two or three per week email blasts to more than 40,000 San Jose businesses with approximate open rate 34%, click rate 5% - updates on health orders, webinar information, loan and grant program announcements • Direct outreach to 100s of individual businesses through email, phone hotline and in-person outreach • Multi-lingual capacity added to all communications channels for critical infoRegular blog posts on issues, programs, developments, news regarding recovery as well as general economic development updates
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June 11, 2021
The Bay Area Review
Energy Grid ..............
Silicon Valley Power Adds Additional Renewable Energy Resources to its Power Portfolio
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Last month, the City of Santa Clara, through its municipally-owned electric utility, Silicon Valley Power (SVP) entered into a threeyear contract with CIM Group’s Aquamarine Westside Project to purchase approximately 500,000 Megawatt Hours (MWhs) of renewable energy. The energy comes from their newly constructed solar project from the Westlands Solar Park located in Fresno and Kings Counties. The Westlands Solar Park located in California’s San Joaquin Valley is one of the world’s largest solar park. “We are excited to partner with Aquamarine and continue our mission to add clean energy resources to our power portfolio.” said Manuel Pineda, Assistant
City Manager and Chief Electric Utility Officer. SVP’s portion of the project is expected to come online in September 2021 and will provide enough energy to power over 28,360 Santa Clara households. This renewable energy contract is expected to save Santa Clara ratepayers hundreds of thousands of dollars over the three-year contract term. Visit SiliconValleyPower.com/ RenewableEnergy for more information about SVP’s commitment to renewable energy. ABOUT THE CITY OF SANTA CLARA Located at the heart of Silicon Valley about 45 miles south of San Francisco, the City of Santa Clara truly is “The Center of What’s Possible.” Incorporated
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in 1852, Santa Clara covers an area of 19.3 square miles with an estimated population of 129,498. Santa Clara is home to an extraordinary array of high-tech companies, including Applied Materials, Intel, Nvidia, Oracle, and Ericsson. The City of Santa Clara is also home to Santa Clara University, California’s Great America Theme Park, and Levi’s® Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers and SB50. For more information, go to SantaClaraCA.gov.
ABOUT SILICON VALLEY POWER Silicon Valley Power (SVP) is the trademark adopted for use by the not‑for‑profit electric municipal utility of Santa Clara, CA, serving residents and businesses for over 120 years. SVP provides power to nearly 55,000 customers, at rates 25 to 48 percent below neighboring communities. SVP is the only full-service, vertically integrated publicly owned utility in Silicon Valley, owning generation, transmission and distribution assets. See more at: SiliconValleyPower.com.
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And Now... Please Enjoy Our Feature Presentation [Continued from Page 01]
“Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It”, and “Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”, 3Below is also adding new releases to the schedule like “Here Today”, “Cruella”, “In the Heights”, “Black Widow”, “Jungle Cruise”, “Stillwater”, “Respect”, and the highly anticipated “The Beatles: Get Back” by filmmaker Peter Jackson. The cafe in the 3Below lobby has also had a facelift, not only to its decor but to the menu. Guests will enjoy a wider range of freshly-made food and beverages to enjoy before, during, or after events. The eatery features gourmet hot dogs, meat and veggie skewers, waffle desserts, gourmet coffee, and beer and wine; vegan and gluten free options available. Validated parking is provided for the parking garage located above the theaters. As eager as everyone is to return to “normal”, 3Below’s team is fully aware that many are being
cautious before venturing out. 3Below’s operations manager, Sherrol Simard, wants fans to know, “We will continue to enforce a number of safety protocols – known as ‘CinemaSafe’ – in order to slow the spread of COVID-19 and keep guests and employees healthy. We encourage guests to order tickets online in advance to minimize standing in lines or handling paper tickets. We are still limiting each auditorium to 50% capacity. Guests and employees are required to wear face masks at all times in the lobby and in the theaters, only removing them to eat or drink. When refilling popcorn and drinks, your cup or bucket will be exchanged for a new one.” A page dedicated to Covid-19 Patron Guidelines can be found on 3Below’s website. The producers at 3Below hope the community will once again look at the venue as a “third place.” Producer Shannon Guggenheim
understands “many people have been isolating at home for the better part of fourteen months and might be looking for a place to be other than home and work. We invite you to make 3Below your ‘third place’ and come hang out in our lobby to enjoy the ambience, great tunes, and the tabletop arcade game station. It’s a place to do homework, use the free WiFi while sipping on our homemade lemonade. And it’s where to spend an evening with the family watching a new movie and sharing a meal before taking some premium Italian gelato to go.” 3Below closed the theater doors in mid-March 2020 and furloughed nearly all of its employees. All live productions and classes were cancelled/postponed. With theaters closed worldwide, movie studios delayed releases to 2021 or released to streaming services. These tough decisions have made it doubly difficult for a small theater to stay open. Even with the highly enjoyable “Up on the Roof ” festival presented with the San Jose Downtown Association in October 2020, and a brief Oscar FilmFest in April, the amount of people who were willing to face a pandemic to catch a film was small. The Guggenheims hope patrons will look forward to returning to theaters to see some great films this summer. “We hope you will choose our familyoperated, locally-owned venue as your location of choice to go back to the movies.”
June 11, 2021 Page 5
Public School Bay Area Health Officers Support Full In-person School this Fall
WHAT: Twelve Bay Area Health Officers are united in their deep support for full in-person school instruction when the 202122 school year begins. The lack of in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted education, weakened the social supports provided by school communities, negatively impacted mental health, and prevented participation in the rituals and shared milestones that tie our communities together. Public health researchers, the CDC, the California Department of Public Health, and local health departments
have learned from the research and experiences of classroom instruction that the risk of COVID-19 transmission among children wearing masks is very low. WHO: Bay Area Health Officers representing the counties of San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Benito, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, and the City of Berkeley. WHEN: The above mentioned met to discuss a RETURN TO INPERSON CLASSES Thursday, June 3, 10 am WHERE: Everett Middle School, 450 Church St. San Francisco, CA 94114
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June 11, 2021
The Bay Area Review
Asbestos campaigner recognized with award A woman who lost her husband to asbestosrelated cancer has received an award to recognise her work to raise awareness of the dangers of the deadly material and to support others who have been exposed. Linda Reinstein, of Redondo Beach, California, has spent nearly two decades helping others and calling for more awareness about asbestos after her husband Alan was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2003. Her dedication led her to co-founding the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) and the annual Global Asbestos Awareness Week. She has worked closely with the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), which launched the asbestos phase of its No Time to Lose campaign in April 2018.
IOSH has now recognised this support with a President’s Distinguished Service Award (PDSA). These are presented by IOSH, the global chartered body for health and safety professionals, to reward those who go the extra mile to protect others from harm. They are normally presented in-person, but Covid restrictions meant Linda was notified on a video call by IOSH’s President Jimmy Quinn and Chief Executive Bev Messinger, with the certificate mailed out to her. After receiving the award, she said: “I am truly honoured. From a national and international perspective, the numerous prevention campaigns and events have allowed me to work with inspirational people like [fellow campaigner] Mavis Nye and the entire IOSH team.
“Embracing collaboration, IOSH and ADAO have forged a strong partnership and galvanized an unbreakable bond for today and the future. My award is shared with the entire ADAO community who are truly dedicated and believe that together we can make change happen.” Jimmy said: “Linda is absolutely determined to ensure other people don’t suffer the same as she has. She is truly inspirational, having devoted huge amounts of time to protecting people, raising awareness, campaigning and supporting those who have been exposed. “For those reasons, I consider her a more than worthy recipient of the PDSA and I am delighted to have been able to inform her of this.” The No Time to Lose campaign has focused on four carcinogens which workers are exposed to and can cause cancer. They are diesel emissions, silica dust, solar radiation and, most recently, asbestos. Through the campaign, the Institution has provided free resources and guidance to help businesses and their workers avoid exposure to these carcinogens. More information can be found on the campaign website https://www.notimetolose. org.uk/ About IOSH The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is the world’s leading chartered professional body for people responsible for safety and health in the workplace. We have more than 47,000 members in over 130 countries.
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We act as a champion, adviser, advocate and trainer for safety and health professionals working in organizations of all sizes. Our focus is to support our members in their efforts to create workplaces that are safer, healthier and more sustainable. Our shared objective is a world where work is safe and healthy for every working person, every day. Through our 20172022 strategy, ‘WORK 2022 – shaping the future of safety and health’, we will seek to enhance the occupational safety and health profession, build strategic collaborative partnerships across industry and strengthen
our influence globally through impactful research and development. About No Time to Lose Launched in November 2014, the campaign aims to raise awareness and understanding of occupational cancer and help businesses manage the risks through education and the provision of helpful resources. Respirable crystalline silica is the third cancercausing agent which the campaign has focused on, the others being diesel engine exhaust emissions and solar radiation. For more information about IOSH’s No Time to Lose campaign, go to www.notimetolose.org.uk.
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The PATH Home
City of San José and Destination: Home Speed Up Production of Deeply Affordable Housing Through Renewed Partnership Following pilot project that shaved permitting time, Destination: Home renews contract with City to expedite extremely low income and supportive housing projects SAN JOSE, Calif. – A pilot project between the City of San José and Destination: Home has reduced the planning review time of proposals for extremely low income (ELI) and supportive housing developments by more than 20 percent, moving these muchneeded developments into production an average of two months faster. Silicon Valley has long suffered from a dramatic shortage of affordable homes, particularly at the lowest income levels. To help ramp up production of homes serving the extremely low-income population, three years ago Destination: Home provided a capacitybuilding grant to the City’s Planning, Building and Code Enforcement (PBCE) Department to fund a planner dedicated to expediting the review of proposals for affordable housing developments. Since spring 2018, City planning staff have shepherded 14 extremely low income and supportive housing
proposals through the planning review process, representing 1,270 affordable units. Projects that went through this facilitated process from beginning to end secured approval within nine months on average, compared to 11 months for projects that went through the normal process. This shaved two months off the production timeline. “Thanks to the collaboration between Destination: Home and the City of San José, we now have a more efficient and effective timeline to enhance the financial feasibility of affordable housing projects,” said San José Mayor Sam Liccardo. “This streamlined process will create new access for developers and lifechanging homes for our unhoused neighbors.” There are currently six more deeply affordable housing projects under review and many other projects in a preliminary phase. “Developers who are focused on these types of housing projects will find San José provides tremendous assistance,” said Chu Chang, Acting Director for PBCE. “This grant from Destination: Home has enabled us to deepen our expertise
on projects that entail very specific permitting processes as required by several recent state laws. Our planning staff can effectively and efficiently guide them through the process.” Joel John Roberts, CEO of PATH and PATH Ventures, concurs. “In cities across the state we have experienced how proposed supportive housing developments can get bogged down in the approval process, wasting time and money,” said Roberts. “But in San José, we were able to get approval relatively quickly to build two ELI housing developments, resulting in getting people off the streets quicker and more cost-efficiently.” PATH Venture’s 4th and East Younger Apartments is a project that completed San José’s planning review process in under six months. The permanent supportive housing community is now in construction and will become home to nearly 100 seniors next year. Based on these promising results, Destination: Home will be renewing $540,000 in funding for the dedicated
planner role for another three years. Staff estimate the renewed contract will be considered by the City Council this summer. Both the City of San José and Destination: Home are undertaking other actions related to speeding up affordable housing production. At the City, the Housing Catalyst program has recently launched a new Housing Site Explorer Map that helps affordable housing developers identify potential development sites. Destination: Home is replicating these efforts with other jurisdictions in Santa Clara County. For example, Destination: Home is providing a capacity-building grant to the City of Morgan Hill in their work on the 20202025 Community Plan to End Homelessness. “No one entity can end homelessness on its
own,” said Ray Bramson Chief Operating Officer of Destination: Home, “but the effectiveness of this work demonstrates what’s possible when collaborating around solutions for the most vulnerable members of our community. At the end of the day, this partnership will help get people housed sooner. And it’s critical that we continue to work together across sectors to drive the production of more extremely low income and supportive housing and other proven interventions.” The capacity-building grants made to the City of San José were funded through Destination: Home’s Supportive Housing Innovation Fund, which has been generously supported by major philanthropic contributions from Cisco and Apple.
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Outdoor Fun
Chocolate & Chalk Art Festival Berkeley, CA -- The sidewalks along Shattuck and Cedar streets in North Berkeley are the target of artists young and old, professional and greenhorn during the 22nd CHOCOLATE & CHALK ART FESTIVAL on Saturday, June 19, 10AM-4PM. In order to keep us all healthy, there won’t be a street festival this year but there will be lots of joy. MAKE ART! With no fees to artists, areas of sidewalk are assigned for you to create your own fanciful chalk drawings. The theme for this year is “Art Sparks Joy.” Families or groups may work together, artists may work alone, but everyone comes away with a sense of pride in their work for all to see. First 25 to preregister at (https://is.gd/ chocolate2021) get a free box of chalk. Otherwise, register in person on Saturday, June 19 at the event booth at Shattuck & Cedar where a box of colorful artist›s chalk is available for $10 cash. A CHALK ART CONTEST for the best
drawing will be judged after 4PM. Top three winners will receive cash prizes ($150/$100/$50). Ten runners up get a $25 gift certificate from Books, Inc. Winners will be notified by Wednesday after the event. See prior
winners at https://www. anotherbullwinkelshow. com/chalk-art-2018/ EAT CHOCOLATE! This year, due to COVID, no formal tasting menu or tickets will be produced. Local businesses will be offering special
June 11, 2021 Page 11 chocolate treats and gift items for sale. Follow the North Shattuck Assn. @ NOSHABerkeley for the list. This is a familyfriendly, free event produced by Another Bullwinkel Show and
sponsored by the North Shattuck Association, City of Berkeley Civic Arts, and Books Inc. For a good time, take BART to Downtown Berkeley and stroll north six blocks. ChocolateAndChalkArt. com
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June 11, 2021
The Bay Area Review
Networking Reception & Performance by Tyrese!
ABOUT CULTURE SHIFTING WEEKENDS Culture Shifting Weekends is an annual invite-only bi-coastal event that takes place in Silicon Valley, and Silicon Alley and Miami. These are the only events of their kind in the United States that unite over 400 accomplished Black & Latinx tech executives, entrepreneurs, investors, innovators and social impact leaders in order to enable deals, collaborations and wealth creation. Each coast has a different format; Silicon Valley is the largest gathering of Black leaders in tech, innovation and
Get ready for a great evening of music by this R&B singer and actor known for his roles in “Transformers” and “The Fast and the Furious”.
#CultureShiftingWeekend Saturday, June 19 6:00-8:00PM PDT Celebrating Juneteenth & African American Music Appreciation Month!
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social impact to narrow the inequality gap in entrepreneurship, on corporate boards, in tech and in the c-suite. Silicon Alley is the largest gathering of Black and Latinx Venture Capitalists to narrow the inequality gap in this sector. Miami is a hybrid of the two. Culture Shifting Weekend is an annual signature event of Culture Shift Labs; a diversity and innovation management consultancy. ABOUT CULTURE SHIFT LABS Culture Shift Labs (CSL) is a diversity and
innovation consultancy that provides services under three pillars: Advising, Strategy, & Activation. Since 2006, we have been a recognized leader in integrating social and financial returns in ways that improve businesses and society. Our Knowledge + Network Formula powers tangible outcomes for our clients. CSL serves Fortune 500s, Tech Companies, the Investor Community (Family Offices, Impact Investors, PE and VC Funds) and Non-Profits. Our firm is based in New Jersey with satellite offices in San Francisco and Miami.
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Californians Can Claim COVID-Related Sick Leave for Four More Months Quinci LeGardye | California Black Media More Californians now qualify for COVIDrelated paid sick leav
Thanks to the state’s 2021 COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave law, SB 95, which went into effect in March and was introduced by Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) in December last year. But eligiblilty for that compensation will continue for only four more months. Qualifying employees now have access to up to 80 hours of paid time off for reasons related to COVID-19. The maximum amount of 2021 COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave an employee can receive is $511 per day, or $5,110 in total. This is separate from any paid sick leave taken in 2020. The law is retroactive, extending eligibility back to Jan. 1, 2021, through Sept. 30. Before the 2021 law passed, Californians were only eligible for three days of paid sick leave based on provisions in the previous 2020 expanded paid sick leave legislation.
That law expired Jan. 1. On April 26, the California Department of Industrial Relations announced the launch of an online eligibility tool that workers can use to determine whether they qualify for the expanded paid sick leave. In the announcement, Labor Commissioner Lilia García-Brower said, “The 2021 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave law provides workers up to 80 hours of paid sick leave if they or a family member are unable to
work or telework due to COVID-19, including for vaccine-related reasons. We designed this tool so workers and their employers can get information on workers’ paid sick leave options.” According to the website, in order to be eligible, workers must be unable to work or telework because they were caring for themselves due to COVID-19, caring for a
June 11, 2021 Page 13 child or another family member, or attending a vaccine appointment. Other qualifying circumstances include caring for a child whose school or place of care is closed or unavailable due to COVID-19 on the premises. The 2021 supplemental paid sick leave is only available for those working for employers that have 26 or more employees. The 2021 law also only applies to W-2 employees, unlike the 2020 law which applied to independent contractors in the food sector. If a person believes they are an employee misclassified as an independent contractor, they may be entitled to receive the expanded paid sick leave. The amount of paid
leave each worker receives is based on an employee’s work schedule. Employees are entitled to 80 hours of paid leave if they are considered full time, or if they worked or were scheduled to work an average of at least 40 hours per week in the two weeks before they take the leave. Part-time employees with fixed schedules are entitled to the number of hours the employee is scheduled to work over two weeks. Part-time employees without fixed schedules are entitled to take 14 times the average number of hours they worked each day in the six months prior to their leave. Newly hired part-time workers without fixed schedules are entitled to the number of hours that they worked in the previous two weeks.
The expanded paid sick leave is paid out by employers with more than 25 employees. If an employer refuses to pay for the leave, the employee can file a claim with the California Labor Commissioner’s Office. For more information on the paid sick leave program or to check eligibility, visit the California Department of Industrial Relations website.
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June 11, 2021
The Bay Area Review
Rodeo Days
Top Bull Riders and Rodeo Athletes head to Las Vegas for Historic Weekend
LAS VEGAS – The world’s top bull riding and rodeo athletes will head to Las Vegas for a historic Western sports weekend in the Entertainment Capital of the World June 11-13 as PBR (Professional Bull Riders) welcomes fans back into the arena for the Unleash The BeastLas Vegas Invitational and the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo- Vegas Showdown at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The pairing of the world’s leading bull riding league with the only national touring all-Black rodeo will mark several milestones: PBR will, for the first time, co-produce the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo, bringing fans an event that includes Bareback Riding, Tie-Down Roping, Bull Dogging, Ladies Barrel Racing, Ladies Steer Undecorating, Bull Riding and Junior Break Away on Sunday, June 13. The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo will be broadcast at 1 p.m. ET on CBS Television Network on Saturday, June 19 – Juneteenth – becoming the first all-Black rodeo to
be televised on national broadcast television. In early February, PBR announced a partnership with the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo (BPIR) to create new events, exposure, and opportunities for the largest and longestrunning rodeo celebrating Black Western sports athletes. “Our mission is to educate people about the talented and skilled black cowboys and cowgirls who not only compete in the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo, but historically, have made significant contributions to American history,” said Valeria HowardCunningham, President of BPIR. “Showcasing an all-Black rodeo on CBS Television Network on a PBR event weekend will be a proud and shining moment for our athletes, our organization, and the entire sport of rodeo. This will be one of the most important events in our 37-year history.” “PBR aligned with BPIR to help expand their reach and give talented rodeo athletes new opportunities
in new cities, venues, and broadcast outlets,” said Sean Gleason, Commissioner and CEO of PBR. “We’re thrilled to see our vision come to life in with this great historic rodeo in Las Vegas paired with our premier series and carried on CBS. “We are excited about the partnership between PBR and the Bill Pickett Invitational and their efforts to celebrate Black rodeo athletes,” said Dan Weinberg, Executive Vice President, Programming, CBS Sports. “Developing and showcasing diverse programming is a top priority at CBS Sports, and we are proud to air the first-ever national broadcast of an allBlack rodeo on CBS on Juneteenth.” “When you think of the most significant moments involving Black cowboys and rodeo, there is Bill Pickett developing what would become the sport of steer wrestling, the American Black Cowboy Association hosting an all-Black rodeo at Downing Stadium in Harlem 50 years ago this year, Myrtis Dightman becoming the first Black rodeo cowboy to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo, Charlie Sampson becoming the first to win a PRCA world title, and Fred Whitfield winning multiple PRCA world titles,” said Keith Ryan Cartwright, the author of Black Cowboys of Rodeo.
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“But seeing a Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo on network television – there is no greater moment in the past 100 years.” PBR has been a leader throughout the health crisis in establishing protocols for safe and responsible events. PBR was the first major professional sport in North America to welcome fans back to indoor arenas with new safety protocols in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in July 2020 following the COVID-19 related shutdown, and also the first to offer a professional sporting event at full indoor-arena capacity when returning to Sioux Falls on April 9-11. PBR is committed to continuing to create a safe and responsible environment for all fans in attendance. Guidelines and protocols in place for the PBR weekend will include: • Mobile ticketing to replace traditional
printed tickets. • Increased reliance on cashless, contactless concessions. • Adherence to any/all state or local mandated guidelines for social distancing and facial coverings, Temperature testing and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) screening for all staff. • In addition to CDC screening, PBR staff and athletes will undergo medical testing for COVID-19. The bull riding action begins at 7:45 p.m. PT on Friday, June 11 and 6:45 p.m. PT on Saturday, June 12. The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo will follow on Sunday, June 13 and begin at 12:45 p.m. PT. Tickets for the three days of nonstop action go on sale to the general public on Friday, April 23 and can be purchased by calling PBR at (800) 732-1727, by visiting pbr.com or axs. com. Prices range from $20.45 to $140.25.
The Bay Area Review
Online: www.thebayareareview.com
Travel News
Us Airlines May Soon Be Required To Refund Fees For Delayed Checked Baggage By: Harry Johnson
June 11, 2021 Page 15 the official said. Last year, more than 100,000 consumers complained to the government about airline service. Refunds were the biggest gripe, although most claimed airlines refused to give refunds to consumers who cancelled trips because of the pandemic. The Transportation Department is seeking a $25.5 million fine against Air Canada, but has not
taken action against other carriers over refunds for canceled flights. In 2019, the last full year before the pandemic, passengers paid US airlines $5.76 billion in fees on checked bags, according to the Transportation Department. That dropped to $2.84 billion last year, when travel slumped because of the pandemic. The figures do not include fees for carry-on bags.
US airlines may soon be be required to refund fees on delayed checked baggage
The proposal will require refunds if airlines fail to deliver a bag within 12 hours of the passenger’s US flight touching down or within 25 hours of an international flight. • Current regulations require refunds only if bags are lost. • The bag-fee proposal is the first of several airline-consumer regulations coming from the administration of US President Joe Biden. • If approved, the proposal could take effect by next summer. A senior official with the US Department of Transportation said that the agency will issue a proposal in the next few days that would requite the airlines to refund fees
on checked baggage if the bags aren’t delivered to passengers within “reasonable” time. The proposal, if made final after a lengthy regulation-writing process, would also require prompt refunds for fees on extras such as internet access if the airline fails to provide the service during the flight. If approved, the proposal could take effect by next summer, official added. The proposal will require refunds if airlines fail to deliver a bag within 12 hours of the passenger’s US flight touching down or within 25 hours of an international flight. Current regulations require refunds only if bags are lost, although
airlines must compensate passengers for “reasonable” incidental expenses incurred while their bags are delayed. The government does not know how often airlines keep fees even when bags are significantly delayed. The bag-fee proposal is the first of several airline-consumer regulations coming from the administration of US President Joe Biden under an executive order that the president will soon sign, according to a senior Department of Transportation (DOT) official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a proposal that hasn’t been made public. The order will be designed to boost competition and give consumers more power,
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